EU and 15 other WTO countries establish alternative dispute resolution

The European Union (EU) and 15 other countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreed on Friday on an alternative mechanism for filing appeals and resolving trade disputes, after the appeals body was paralyzed by the US blockade.

The EU countries, as well as Australia, Brazil, Canada, China and Hong Kong, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Switzerland and Uruguay informed of their decision through a joint statement.

European Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan said that they would continue their efforts to restore the WTO's appellate body, which was paralyzed after the United States resigned from renewing its judges, and invited other WTO countries to join the interim agreement. Hogan called the pact “crucial” to the respect and enforcement of international trade rules.

It will ensure that trade disputes can be resolved through a fair and independent process, which the European Commission believes is "essential to the rules-based multilateral trading system. According to the EU executive, it hopes that the agreement will be officially notified to the WTO in the coming weeks so that it can become operational, once the respective members of the organisation have completed their internal procedures.